After 70 years they still stocked engines here – TU

In the first half of the last century, there existed many engine factories in this country. In time, most were closed down or merged with others, and with the years, almost all closed down.

The one exception is the Rolls-Royce owned Bergen Engines, which is the country’s last remaining producer large reciprocating engines.

This may sound bleak, but the reality is that it is not going too bad. Although the number of employees has been reduced, it made major investments to ensure that your business is ready when the economy is pointing upwards again.

70 years of engine production

The factory located the Bergens northernmost point, Hordvikneset. The engine manufacturer has been a part of Rolls-Royce Group since 2000, having been owned by Ulstein Group and Aker group.

Although the BMV, which today is the Rolls-Royce-owned Bergen Engines, has a much longer history, has now 70 years experience as a manufacturer of engines mainly marine use.

Along the motor factory had different names and owners, and motor production was separated from BMV 50 ies. The company’s engine plant sprang from was established in 1855 and closed down in 1991.

In 2015, Bergen Engines been in continuous operation for 70 years. On that occasion the company has published the book “Motorkraft”, authored by Dag Bakka Jr, where the history of motor production are presented.

This article is mainly based on this book.

From diesel to gas

Until the 80s there was diesel engines it was about, before gas engines was introduced.

– Gas engine was something that came from the left, which should be done without that one had the money to do it, in the difficult years. Using funding from external, you get a gas engine just in the right moment, when the need opens in Denmark, said writer Dag Bakka Jr. the book release.

Historical perspectives

logo brand name Bergen Diesel, adopted in 1954. Photo: Illustration

There has been much production of propulsion systems in Norway, but until the 40s were all production of diesel engines under license from Burmeister & amp; Wain, at Akers Mechanical Workshop. Thurs the 2nd small Norwegian-developed diesel engines were also produced by Liaaen and Moss.

On Bergen Mechanical Workshops, BMV, were produced steam engines and boilers. 30s were produced parts for diesel engines, and in the early 40s also auxiliary engines.

Narvik Væring Ludvig Saxe had throughout his career gained some experience with diesel engines, and was engineer from NTH in Trondheim. When he was 34 years old in 1942, he was hired by the BMV.

Wild series produce Norwegian motor

After considering license production, came the Board concluded that it should be prepared a modern diesel engine. The aim was that it should be series produced, and compete with engines built abroad. It had production facilities modernized.

The first test engine was built in 1943-1944, wrote Saxe in a memo from 1951. Although it due to lack of production was not possible to carry out complete tests, it was on the basis of good results decided that production would begin.

Saxe was of the opinion that the Norwegian shipping industry would not be competitive if it had to import engines. In a board meeting in 1944, plans were approved. It would be built engines with 50 horsepower per cylinder.

D-engine

Production was started in January 1945. It was booked six six-cylinder main engines and four spare cylinders. This was the so-called D-engine.

This was a turning flushed two-stroke direct injection diesel engine with up to 55 horsepower per cylinder.

The first was delivered as propulsion motor for fishing vessels, although the idea was that it should be used in leveraged facility with two and four engines per propeller shaft. To deliver it as clean propulsion engine was made to introduce it in the market.

It was produced altogether 161 such engines, which were used both for propulsion and stationary. Defense was a major customer. Production ceased in 1959.

H-engine, also called bus engine was made in duplicate. Photo: Marius Valle

H-engine

In 1950, the first four-stroke engine produced. This was a bus engine, and the idea was that it would also be used marine.

One of two prototypes were installed in a bus belonging Bergen Sporveier, and was in operation for many years. The other went to Oslo University College, where it was used in teaching.

The engine came, however, never in regular production, as access to cheap imported engines made the project unprofitable.

H engine was a six-cylinder four-stroke petrol engine, with an output of 120 horsepower at 1800 rpm.

The engine from Oslo University College was returned to Bergen Engines in conjunction with the opening of an internal museum in the middle of 90s.

R-engine

In 1953 the prototype of the next generation diesel engine finished. The dissolved some of the D-motor challenges, primarily the disadvantages of low load. R engine was designed as auxiliary to D engine. From 1956, however, it is also supplied as propulsion motor.

R engine was a four-stroke direct injection diesel engine series, with three to eight cylinders. It could be configured as both a naturally aspirated engine with turbocharging. Cylinder performance was up to 125 horsepower.

This engine was in production for 27 years, the last was delivered in 1980. Then we had 1755 R engines left the factory in Bergen.

L engine was originally designed for use in NSB locomotives. Photo: Marius Valle

L engine

When it in 1954 became known that the NSB should renew switcher park, dedicated BMV themselves to ensure that these would receive Norwegian diesel engines.

BMV would use R engine for this, but NSB wanted to swap motors in some locomotives. This meant that R engine would not fit.

It became clear that the modification would be costly, so it was just as well to construct a new engine for this purpose. Production started in 1956, but NSB would not buy an unproven engine and turns giving him rent three engines in a test period. First copy was delivered in 1957.

This was a modern engine with four-valve cylinder covers and turbocharging. The produced up to 200 horsepower per cylinder and had a speed range of 720 to 900 revolutions per minute. It was built with five to nine cylinders.

Test engines worked well and NSB entered orders in 1960.

A total delivered BMV 46 engines for NSB, and after 35 years of operation was most had engines still the opprinnelinge piston liner, cylinder covers and pistons.

The engine was also used as generators at the naval base Haakonsvern, and later for marine use. Amerikalinjens Saga Fjord was a prestigious delivery.

In the period 1960 to 1987, it delivered a total of 1041 L engines.

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A sectional view of a KR engine. Photo: Marius Valle

kV and KR engines

Having been decided built in 1965, so the first KV-engine light of day in 1969.

This was a V-configured engine with 50 degree angle, and used part of the L-engine components to get it to market quickly.

It was built as the 12- to 18-cylinder versions, and was used for the propulsion and generator. From 1975 it also produced in series configuration, under the name KR.

The first delivery was a 12-cylinder KV-edition Kristian Jebsen Shipowners’ M / S Jennes “and then to supply vessels, tugs and tankers. Later engines delivered to Aker H3 oil rigs were in use in Ulstein UT-supply ships, and also used at power station on Svalbard.

In the mid 80s, this engine also built into gas operation. The last engine was delivered in 2008, as much as 39 years after the first one was built.

Thus, in other words the engine is still in use today, and older engines are still in operation.

An example is Hurtigruten ship MS “Vesterålen”, which is powered by two 16-cylinder KV motors. These have been continuous since 1982.

KV-engine was in 1999 certified for the International Maritime Organization IMO NOX emissions regulations.

Overall, it was delivered 645 KV motors, and 1117 KR engines. Both had a cylinder performance of up to 300 horsepower.

A-engine

In the late 60s it was decided to make a smaller motor type with 210 mm bore. A engine was the result.

This was a four-stroke direct injection diesel engine with a cylinder capacity of 150 horsepower.

The prototype of A-engine was started in 1972. Then came the oil crisis .

Small dimensions and a speed of 1200 revolutions did that it was not suitable for heavy oil operations.

A B32: 40 engine being prepared for test driving. Photo: Marius Valle

B-engine

It was also decided to create it in a larger variant called the B-engine, this one with 320 mm bore. It was better suited than A-engine, since it was slow with up to 750 turns.

The first prototype was started in September 1984 and the first delivery took place in 1986. The engine was under development until 1998, when it was converted for gas operation.

Although the B-engine came onto the market in an economically difficult period of low activity in the shipbuilding market, was taken into use in farikktrålere, large supply vessels in merchant ships and as auxiliary in large cruise ships.

B engine was delivered in series configuration, in 365 copies in the period 1984 to 2007. In 1997, a version in V-configuration booted, but this was only produced in 29 copies.

A further development of the B-engine called B32: 40 was built in 1998. This is still in production, and was produced in 318 R-configurations and 170 V configurations per the New Year, 2014.

Gas Versions with V- and R-configuration called B35: 40 were developed in the 2000s, and is still in production. These are used both as a generator and propulsion engine. These have an effect on the 645 horsepower per cylinder, and comes with 12 to 20 cylinders.

Bergen Engines’ museum showcases a test version of K-gas engine that was running on coke gas in Mo i Rana in 1986 and 1987 . Photo: Marius Valle

K-gas engine

In 1984 initiated a project to develop a gas engine based on K-engine. After testing on coke gas at Norwegian Coke ovens in Mo i Rana, it was decided to build a production prototype.

This was put into operation at the complex in 1989, and developments received state support under Spung program for utilization of natural gas .

The first engine was delivered Langå thermal power plant in Denmark. Another was in 1992 delivered waste facility by Rådalen in Bergen, where it went on methane gas from the waste.

More engines were delivered, but it turned out eventually that there would be major problems with veivakselhavari. The reason turned out to be in curing machine factory.

K-gas engine came to a total of four editions, where it was delivered 394 engines from 1991 to 2008.

C engine

It was in 1997 decided to make a start development of a new engine that could provide higher performance than the KR-engine. It was then signed an agreement with Hyundai Heavy Industries for the development, which would last until both had their own prototype.

The first delivery took place in spring 2002. This was four nisylindrete generator engines. The engine was to be used as an auxiliary engine, but has also been used as propulsion motor.

The engine has the name C25: 33, and became a substitute for KV engine. This is because it would not be possible to reduce NOx emissions to meet advent arrange IMO requirements in large enough degree.

C-engine was launched in a Mk II version in 2009, where the effect was increased by ten percent and NOx emissions reduced by 20 percent. This also resulted in a lot of the components had to be reinforced, and it was necessary to introduce variable valve timing (VVT) and new turbochargers.

This engine has been in production since 2002 and it is delivered about 240 first-generation engines and 280 second-generation engines.

A gas variant of the second-generation engine called C26: 33 has been in production since 2010. Such are forbåten Høydal, which is the world’s first cargo vessel that is powered exclusively on gas and the world’s first mechanical gas propulsion.

B33: 45 engine

In 2010 began the development of Bergen Engines job of constructing a brand new diesel platform. This was launched in autumn 2014.

The goal was to create a more powerful, cheaper and easier engine that could comply with upcoming emission requirements of IMO. In practice this means that the engine must have a catalyst to reach the requirement of a maximum of 2.4 grams NOx per kilowatt hour.

This engine delivers 804 horsepower (600 kW) per cylinder, and must be delivered with six to 14 cylinders. In the long term also sees Bergen Engine to develop a gas version of the engine.

The engine is the biggest and most powerful factory has made until now.

Investing in recession

Although there is a recession right now, betting Rolls-Royce engine production in Bergen.

Last year it invested heavily in the expansion of production facilities in the ongoing recession.

Summer 2014 came in place a new portal milling machine in connection with the production of a larger version of the engine model B33: 45. This cost 9.9 million euros and is the biggest investment made in a long time. This is the largest machine tool.

This ensures that the plant can continue to build new engines in the years to come. A company with such a long career as an engine factory has obviously been through recessions before, for example in the mid 80s. Then there was also made huge investments, which have made it easier to get started when the economy has been a revival again.

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